Martin County feeling effects of Hurricane Sandy

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Kathy Fitzpatrick, coastal engineer with Martin County keeps, watch over bathtub beach while Martin County engineers build a protective dune line to protect MacArthur Boulevard. Strong surf and wlnds are causing heavy erosion to the beach.

Kite surfers Rick Larson (left), of Palm City, and C. J. McKinney, of Stuart, make good use of the high wind and rough surf developing from approaching Hurricane Sandy at Stuart Beach on Thursday afternoon. "It's just awesome," Larson said about getting lots of air time from the stormy conditions. "You float up there and it's amazing, you can see over the dunes and it's beautiful."

Jerry Alvarez, of Martin County's Engineering department, guides a dump truck operator as 1,600 tons of sand are brought Bathtub Beach in Stuart to defend against flooding of MacArthur Boulevard from approaching Hurricane Sandy on Thursday. "We've got some waves that are building up," said Kathy Fitzpatrick of Martin County Coastal Engineering "We had been hit out here at bathtub beach pretty hard with the extremely high tides and minimal storm we had last week, so we only had a small thin dune remaining out here and that dune is the only thing that seperates the Atlantic Ocean from Macarthur Boulevard which is a major evacuation route for about 253 property owners. so we started yesterday (Wednesday) trucking out sand. "

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012

Images from Martin County beaches as Hurricane Sandy approaches the Treasure Coast on Thursday October 25, 2012